LETTER: College courses should be taken at college

I must respectfully disagree with the opinion expressed in the Feb. 23 editorial "LHS Dual Enrollment winning proposition." I have no doubt that the faculty and administrators at La Vergne High School and Motlow State Community College have the best intentions in establishing the Dual Enrollment Academy. Yes, college tuition is high and getting college credit in advance reduces the time and money it takes to earn a degree.

However, my experiences with college freshman in biology courses over the past 20 years have led me to the conclusion that advanced placement and now dual enrollment courses generally do not give area high school students a "jump-start" for the college experience. After the first exams in these courses, my students are shocked by their low scores and tell me the number of hours they studied and that they had made an A in their college preparatory class.

Many of these students hope to be admitted to graduate professional schools upon graduation but will not be competitive due to a low GPA during their freshman year. This is why we cringe when interviewing prospective students who tell us that they plan to enter our university with dual enrollment credit hours or AP credit. The best preparation for college includes both challenging high school courses and counseling toward developing good study skills. College courses are best taken in a college environment.

Steve Murphree

Tombee Court

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LETTER: College courses should be taken at college

I must respectfully disagree with the opinion expressed in the Feb. 23 editorial '